Gabby Williams led a balanced attack with a game-high 16 points, Kelsey Plum was held to a season-low nine and the Golden State Valkyries won a matchup of teams battling to stay alive in the Western Conference portion of the Commissioner’s Cup chase with an 78-58 romp over the visiting Los Angeles Sparks on Monday night in San Francisco.
Kaila Charles chipped in with 13 points, Veronica Burton 12 and Cecilia Zandalasini 10 for the Valkyries (9-5, 4-2), who now trail the Las Vegas Aces and Minnesota Lynx by one game with one remaining.
Coming off a 43-point explosion in a win at Phoenix on Saturday, Plum shot just 3-for-10 overall and 1-for-4 from beyond the arc before fouling out late in the game. The league’s leading scorer totaled seven fewer points than her previous season low.
In recording a third straight win, Golden State led wire-to-wire, building a 25-10 advantage by the end of the first quarter and 19-point margin by halftime. The Sparks went just 1-for-9 from 3-point range while scoring just 26 points in the first 20 minutes.
Los Angeles (7-7, 3-3), which had won three in a row to stay in contention in the Commission’s Cup, finished the game at 33.3% from the field, misfiring on 18 of its 21 3-point attempts.
The Valkyries, meanwhile, hit seven of their 21 shots from deep as part of a 42.4% overall shooting effort.
Coming off the bench, Charles also found time to lead the hosts in rebounds with eight and assists with five. Kiah Stokes had seven rebounds to complement two blocks while Kayla Thornton had four of Golden State’s 13 steals.
Riding 9-for-10 success at the free throw line, Rae Burrell paced the Sparks with 13 points off the bench. Fellow reserve Cameron Brink added 10, while Dearica Hamby had six to go with a game-high 10 rebounds.
Erica Wheeler, Plum’s backcourt partner, tied Charles for game-high assist honors with five, but missed all seven of her shots, including five 3-point attempts, on a scoreless night.
–Field Level Media
